shades of sunlight
by acronymed
Summary: COMPLETE. On breaking up, and then getting back together. Repeatedly. "Do you have a vendetta against clothes, or something?" — Rikku/Gippal.
1. the terror of breaking up

**TITLE.** Shades of Sunlight  
**FANDOM. **Final Fantasy X-2  
**PAIRING. **Rikku/Gippal.  
**SUMMARY.** On breaking up, and then getting back together. "Do you have a _vendetta _against clothes or something?"  
**DISCLAIMER.** I own nothing, tragically enough.  
**NOTES.** I love this pairing so hard. God, it's ridiculous.

* * *

Three months after she'd helped defeat Sin, Pops called her into his office in Bikanel. She was almost sixteen, covered up to her elbows in grease and her hair had grown out enough that she could do interesting, awesome things with it involving braids and beads. He snorted when she tried to scratch her nose and smudged it black in the process. "What's up, old man?"

"I'm sending you to Djose," he said simply, and grinned when she choked on nothing, the horrible, evil fiend. "There's a group of Al Bhed there setting up some sort of machine facility. I want you to help them out."

Oh, yeah, them. She'd heard all about them already, and who was leading them. She narrowed her eyes at him and grumped; she knew what this was about. It was another one of his schemes – one of the ones where he tried to get her married off because Shiva forbid Brother ever stopped being a spazz long enough to attract a girl, much less reproduce with one – and they always involved the same people. Him, her, and –

"I hope you know," she said, with as much dignity as she could muster while dripping black sludge all over her favourite boots, "that this is not going to lead to me marrying Gippal."

Because it wasn't. Last she'd checked, Gippal wanted to strangle her or maybe leave her for dead in the desert. Also, he'd been about five feet taller than her and looked like he hadn't eaten in months which was just so _not _attractive and really the only thing he had going for him was the eye patch and just. Ew. It was _Gippal. _He was _annoying.._

"Spira," Cid said, massaging his temples, "I wish it would."

She weighed the pros and cons of throwing a tantrum right there in the tent and only decided not to when Nhadala ducked inside and sent her a look that just screamed If-You-Mess-Up-My-Reports-I-Will-Murder-You-Slowly.

"I'll become a Yevonite," she threatened instead, and felt nauseous just saying it. Wearing all those clothes would be grossly unfair to life in general. She'd _seen _Yunie's summoner's robes, and those had apparently been horribly offensive.

No one batted an eyelash at Dona for some reason, though. Rikku took a moment to ponder her greatest source of entertainment. Cid coughed. "You don't have the modesty for it. The hover's picking you up tomorrow."

She looked at him blankly. Images of Dona and Barthello promptly exploded from her brain in itty-bitty pieces, like scantily-clad, comically voiced confetti. "TOMORROW?"

"Stop yelling."

"THIS IS NOT YELLING. YOU HAVE NOT EVEN BEGUN TO _SEE _YELLING."

"You're rustling my files," Nhadala said ominously, and turned to her very, very slowly. The sun somehow reflected off her goggles and gave them a menacing glint. Rikku cowered under the desk.

"... You can have my first born child?" she offered meekly. Cid cackled.

"Yes, she's already planning on having his kids!"

Rikku bit his shin.

* * *

She made a point of showing up at the temple in significantly less clothing than he'd last seen her in. Hopefully, he'd be so repulsed by all the exposed skin, he'd leave her alone and she wouldn't have to marry him ever. Then she could help Yunie bring back Tidus from the you-were-all-crazy-high-the-whole-trip-and-dreamed-me-dead and he could bring one of his tanned friends with him.

Later, she would realize she'd had managed to forget a few key things – like Gippal was male and she'd gone throw an amazing growth spurt during the pilgrimage and was no longer the flattest girl in all of Spira. So of course, when she showed up in a half-shirt and her green shorts and boots, thinking Gippal would never, ever want to talk to Cid's girl ever again from sheer mortification, half the growing Faction wondered if she was insane.

That might've been because she was muttering her evil plan out loud to herself, though.

"Maybe if I wear a skirt next time," she nodded, grinning at a rock, "Oooh, all that leg will give him a seizure. He'll probably be so overcome with icky he'll send me home!"

"Is she for real?" One worker turned to the other. "Seriously?"

"She was one of Lady Yuna's guardians," the other pointed out. "They're all kind of whacked."

Gippal chose to saunter out that moment in all his blond, eye-patched glory and strut towards her. Rikku looked him over. Still obnoxiously tall, but now–

_Biceps! _She thought gleefully, and then squashed the thought before it decided to take up permanent residence in her brain. _EW, BICEPS._

She made a face. He stopped in front of her in what she thought to be the most flaming purple shirt in the world and squinted. Or pretended to squint while he very obviously stared at her chest. She made a point of not crossing her arms. The disgust would set in any minute.

"What can I do for you, sweetheart?" He raised his eyebrow at her, smirking. Rikku froze. That was not disgust. That was... suave. Flirty, even.

OH SWEET MERCIFUL IXION, GIPPAL WAS TRYING TO PICK HER UP.

She made an unintelligible noise. He leaned in closer, one hand on his hip. Rikku wondered-if-slash-prayed he was suddenly fiercely, dedicatedly gay. "Coeurl got your tongue, babe?"

"... I hate my life," she whimpered, and buried her face in her hands. Everyone sucked. This sucked. He wasn't supposed to be hitting on her – he was supposed to be running, preferably screaming, in the opposite direction. And he wasn't supposed to be oddly sexy, either!

"Aw," he petted her hair, and Rikku tensed at the familiarity of the gesture. "Can't handle being a princess anymore, Cid's girl?"

"YOU," she shrieked, and jumped back several feet. He snickered. "YOU – YOU -"

"Me, yes," he repeated blandly. She marched in demented circles for a few seconds, spluttering.

"YOU NINCOMPOOP."

"... I see maturity has been kind to you," he said. It was so sarcastic, it practically oozed out of him. She backtracked and entertained thoughts of him as a giant Flan. The visual was disturbingly fitting. "Are you done scaring my workers half to death or do you need another couple minutes to re-enact your fifth birthday?"

The fact that he even remembered her screaming that insult at him when they'd been toddlers blindsided her for a second. Then she remembered she was really, really, _really _unimpressed with him. "I'm not marrying you."

He blinked once, slowly. "Good to know."

She nodded, expression solemn. "And I'm not giving Nhadala our first born child."

"That," he paused, rubbed his chin, "that is a very good idea, actually."

"She can have Wakka's."

"Whose?"

Rikku shrugged and decided they could be friends again since he wasn't going to try and have her kids. "He's a fatty. Now show me around! This is boring."

He cocked his head as she fell into step beside him. She beamed up at him until he cleared his throat and looked away. "Your attention span is ridiculous."

"Thanks!"

"And by ridiculous, I mean non-existent."

She huffed and stalked ahead of him. "Now I'm back to being mad at you."

She made it to the temple doors. Then a lightning bolt shot out of nowhere. She swore she felt it graze her leg. "GIPPAL IT WANTS MY BLOOD."

He looked sideways at her, where she was curled around his shoulders and gripping his hair. "You're a whole new brand of psychotic, you know that?"

"I would dignify that with a response," she said haughtily, "but such insults are not worthy of my – IT TOUCHED MY BUTT IT'S MOLESTING ME WHY IS IT HERE."

"Lightning temple, remember?" He hauled her over his shoulder and pushed the doors open. Rikku jerked wildly until another bolt of lightning struck down directly in front of her face. "Are you okay?"

"I think I'm going into shock," she said seriously. Her paralysis abruptly ended when he pinched her butt. She aimed a kick for his ribs and missed. "YOU CREEPY CYCLOPS PERV."

"Yup, you're fine," he said blithely, and kept walking.

* * *

"It's been _three days. _You have to come out sometime."

"I'll come out," she said in her best negotiator voice, "when it leaves."

"It's lightning. It's not going to just _leave."_

She glared at her door as if _it_ had done her a great injustice instead of Gippal. She hoped he could feel it through the wood. "Then I'm not coming out."

"Well," she gestured violently when he brought out The Drawl, "then I'll just have to come in, considerin' I have the master key and stuff."

She barely had time to dive behind her bed when he walked inside. "... Rikku, you know you've always been shitty at Hide 'n Seek, right?"

She sprung up from the floor, but whether it was because he'd called her out or because she was suffering from a heart attack, she couldn't decide. "You called me Rikku!"

"Yes," he said slowly. "That _is _your name, isn't it? Unless that's changed since the last time I saw you, too."

He sounded angry, almost. She tilted her head, curiosity burning. "Are you mad at me?"

He sighed. "No, not you. Never you, even if you are absolutely insane."

She smiled at him, wide and toothy, until her cheeks hurt. He was looking to the side when she opened her eyes. "I'll, um, I'll get over the lightning thing. 'Cause it's annoying and all and yeah."

"I don't know," he grinned at her crookedly and maybe her heart did a weird flip that vaguely resembled one of Tidus' stupid blitzball moves. Maybe. "I kind of like having you jump all over me every three seconds."

"Mood: killed," she deadpanned, flopping face down onto the bed. "Go away, you stalker-rapist-man."

"Your insults just get wittier and wittier."

"You seem to be sucking the intelligence out of me."

"Maybe I should leave, then." He looked painfully solemn. "I mean, it's not like you can afford to be giving what little you have away."

She threw her mattress at him. And then tried to take it back. "Oooh, I'm sorry, don't take it away, it's so comfy and not made of sand."

His eye was slightly wider than usual. He was probably just trying to get over the shock of her being a total badass. "I'll see you in the lobby in ten. Try not to blow anything up between here and the lift."

"It's like, three feet away!"

"That's three feet too many," he snarked, and ducked out of the room when she attempted to pick up the wardrobe. She brushed off her clothes and tried to straighten her hair. Light flashed outside and shot her already frazzled nerves into the ground.

She sprinted out the door and vaulted over the stairwell-railing, landing on her feet next to a repair machine, screaming. "GIPPAL IT'S BACK."

She somehow managed to hear him facepalm from three floors up.

* * *

"Well?" Cid looked decidedly pleased when he came to visit them. "Any progress?"

"Gippal's trying to seduce me," she whined, and batted his hands away from her sides. "Pops, take me home with you. _Please._"

"Nope!" he said cheerfully. He sent Gippal a relatively terrifying look. "You have to marry her before you get her pregnant, ya hear?"

Gippal beamed and crushed her to his chest. "Yes, sir!"

"I HATE ALL OF YOU," she moaned, covering her face. "YOU MEANIES."

They shared a look over her head. She hated when they did that. "Well," Gippal went, "it's a step up from 'nincompoop'."

Cid winced. "... She _is _almost sixteen, right?"

"I AM RIGHT HERE."

"Much to my ears' dismay," Gippal mumbled into her hair. She paused long enough to wonder just what his face thought it was doing there and _who gave it the right to do that because it sure as heck wasn't her_ when she felt his lips move against her scalp. "It's not the end of the world, you know."

"I AM SAVING MYSELF FOR DEAD BOYS," she shrieked, and stomped on his foot. It didn't do much – he was wearing steel-toed boots. She pouted as hard as she could and reached for her father. "Vydran, if you don't take me back with you I will seduce every single one of his workers and not marry any of them and have bastard children _everywhere_."

Cid blanched. Gippal actually sort of half-cackled, half-growled against her ear. "Not happening. Watch this."

He then proceeded to tell his entire camp she was his girl. Rikku stared at the ground, willed it to open up and eat him, and when that didn't happen, despaired as tragically and loudly as she could until Gippal eventually decided to shut her up.

"YOU JUST RAPED ME."

"It's called kissing, you freak."

"NO. KISSING IS CONSENSUAL. THAT WAS NOT."

"Oh, please, I felt your tongue in my mouth."

She wheezed. "Tell me I'm on the Farplane. Tell me I died and this is my eternal punishment for being too awesome and not hitting on Auron more."

"Nope," he kissed her cheek sweetly, and far more carefully than she'd ever expected him to. His eye was a brighter green, and even though she'd bedazzled his eye-patch in an attempt to thwart his affection for her, it still looked good on him. His fingers glided over her shoulder. "You're stuck with me."

"My life is _so hard," _she sobbed, but got up on tiptoe when he bent down to kiss her again anyway.

* * *

When Gippal wasn't being a complete jackass, she realized, he was actually quite nice. Which was why it totally sucked that she was going to have to break up with him and his fabulous hair that almost rivalled hers in shiny-ness.

"So," she said, not entirely sure how to go about dumping him, "I found this sphere today."

"Yeah?" He was playing with a piece of her hair, other hand splayed out across her stomach. He made a rather nice pillow – she was going to miss this. "What was on it?"

"... A guy," she muttered. "A blonde guy."

He tensed a little behind her. "A blonde... crazy guy?"

"Maybe," she mumbled. "He might've been a blonde, crazy, dead guy."

His fingers stopped tugging at her hair. "You're going to give it to Yuna, aren't you?"

"Yeah."

His palm curved over her hip. "You're going to help her find him, aren't you?"

"Mhm."

He kissed the back of her neck. "You're breaking up with me, aren't you?"

"I'M SORRY," she wailed, and curled into him. "But it's not like I can take you with me 'cause you've got the faction and all and it's just easier 'cause then I won't have to worry about you finding another girl who is somehow as awesome as me and hitting on her like you did me that one day even though I'll probably worry anyways 'cause I do really, really like you but you won't have to worry about me finding my own crazy hot dead guy and—"

"You aren't allowed to find any guys," he stated. "Ever."

She ploughed on. "—and I won't even want them because I'll just keep thinking about you but we have to break up anyway because it's the principle of the thing or something. I think."

"Okay," he said, sounding eerily content. Rikku bit her lip. "Okay, we'll break up."

"Really?"

"_For now,"_ he finished ominously. Rikku squeaked. "And then once you're done making your cousin blissfully happy, you have to come back here."

"Okay."

"And be my girl."

"Okay."

"And have mind blowing sex with me all the time."

"Oka – WHAT."

"I was hoping you wouldn't catch that."

She alternated between beating him with the nearest pillow and smothering him with kisses. "You loser!"

The next day he hugged her like nothing had changed, and it hurt a lot more than she thought it would to get on Brother's airship and say goodbye to him and his crooked smile and studded eye-patch and stupid lavender shirt. Because nothing really had changed.

So she was totally going to worry about girls trying to molest him.

"Did you break Gippal?" Brother asked over the intercom. He sounded oddly hopeful. "He looks... emo."

She paled. "OH SPIRA HE'S GOING TO KILL HIMSELF BEFORE I SEE HIM AGAIN."

She clawed frantically at the windows. Buddy sedated her with a Chocobo plushie. "Don't worry, Rikku, I'm sure he'll be fine."

"I hope he ends it bloodily!" Brother chirped. Rikku broke several important, expensive things before storming up to the bridge and throttling him with her scarf.


	2. and the horror of taking it back

**TITLE. **Shades of Sunlight  
**FANDOM.** Final Fantasy X-2  
**PAIRING. **Rikku/Gippal.  
**SUMMARY.** On breaking up, and then getting back together. "Do you have a _vendetta _against clothes or something?"  
**DISCLAIMER.** I own nothing, tragically enough.  
**NOTES. **Part two! I never thought I'd write anything long enough for them for there to be two parts, but they're just so _fun. _And now it's done.

* * *

Almost a year since she'd last seen him. She'd been building up to this moment for forever, and Paine was shooting her amused looks every time she fixed her hair and smoothed out her skirt.

"Put on pants," Brother commanded. She shot him a cool look. "That is an order."

"I'm wearing a skirt!" she huffed, and pulled the article of clothing in question down over her thighs.

"That is a belt," he replied, looking pained. "And take one of Buddy's shirts."

"I'm wearing a shirt! I look fine!"

"You know you won't change her mind," Buddy said from his station. Brother moaned loudly and started to roll on the floor.

"Evil blonde babies," he grumbled. "I am too young to be an uncle!"

"Are you two really that bad?" Yuna asked. Rikku squeaked and waved her hands in front of her. She was going to kill Brother later. And probably Shinra, just because of the way he'd said _We're approaching Djose Temple _like he knew she was mildly excited about it. What did he know, anyways? He was 'just a kid'.

"No," she finally hissed out, "we are not that bad. We aren't _anything._"

"Uh huh," Paine said. "We'll see."

_I, _Rikku thought morosely, as they landed and Brother continued to lament over Gippal being Sin's incarnate, _am so becoming a nun._

* * *

She'd conveniently forgotten what a bastard he could be at the most inopportune times. And was he hitting on Yuna? She had the urge to maim something.

Paine's lips kept spasming like she was going to burst out laughing at any minute; she conjured up an image of Paine smiling and shivered violently. Today was just not a good day.

He'd called her Cid's Girl. Was a general jackass. And then left.

"THAT – THAT –"

"Words have escaped Rikku?" Brother looked at Yuna with wide eyes. "Did he ruin things completely?"

"YES." Rikku stormed off.

Brother cheered. Paine snorted. "Don't get your hopes up – we have to go back."

She fell into the lift as gracefully as she could and didn't come out until Yuna pried her off her bedpost and practically threw her headfirst down the ramp. "Rikku, honestly, I don't know why you're being so... so..."

"...you," Paine finished. Rikku stuck her tongue out at her.

"He's a jerk," she finally said. "And he laughs at you when you're afraid of something and he makes really bad coffee and Yunie if you marry him I don't think I'd be able to handle it because your children would have bedazzled eye-patches and nice hair and horrible fashion sense."

Yuna looked at her for a very long time, then went, "I do not have horrible fashion sense!"

"PAINE," Rikku screamed, "SHE ISN'T DENYING THE CHILDREN."

Paine sniggered. "He's coming this way."

Rikku promptly stopped moving. Yuna and Paine both gaped. Gippal swaggered over to them and started talking, but she wasn't really paying attention anymore. Him and Yuna were going to have horrible children and she was going to be their Aunt and it was going to be so weird recounting their love story at family reunions: _So, after Yunie made out with a dead guy and The Bastard told me we had to have wild sex together, they met up during our epic adventure, the one I left him to go on, and then POW, BOOM, SHAZAM. Babies._

She tuned back into The Real World long enough to hear him go, "We made quite the couple."

Yuna squealed. This squashed all of Rikku's fears concerning them having little Sin spawns, because no one in their right mind would squeal over their potential husband bringing up his past with their cousin and oh yeah, she should probably be beating him up for that comment.

She shoved him and pretended she wasn't blushing. Or tried to. He winked at her. She might, or might not, have forgotten how to breathe for a few seconds.

"You two are adorable," Yuna gushed. Rikku was still slightly comatose. Paine rolled her eyes.

"WAIT." She jerked back. "I have to go make sure he isn't being molested by a Guado or something against his will, be right back!"

She kicked open the temple doors to complete her badass entrance, but of course he wasn't in the room to see it. Oh well; she'd make him watch it on the security cameras later. The nearest worker looked up at her and pointed towards the Chamber of the Fayth.

"He figured you'd come marching after him," he said. "He's in there."

She stomped up the stairs and into the room. He was leaning stiffly against a giant machina. He almost seemed distraught. "I am not predictable, you turd!"

He was quiet. She took a tentative step forward, because okay, she wasn't _really _mad at him and she didn't really want him to be mad at her either because she _had _missed him even if he'd been hitting on her cousin and –

And he'd been hitting on her beloved cousin.

"YOU BASTARD." She got him around the knees and tackled him to the floor. "YOU HIT ON YUNIE."

Her legs squeezed his sides and she tried to blow a piece of stray hair out of her face, only to have it come back and haunt her some more. He reached up and pushed it back for her. "Thanks, but I'm still mad."

"I noticed," he said, gloved palms skimming over her bare thighs. He gritted his teeth. "Do you have a _vendetta _against clothes or something?"

She blinked, looked down at her attire, then back to him. "I always wear this."

"Fucking fantastic," He groaned. "I'm doomed."

"What?" She frowned. "You aren't allowed to complain! You barely looked at me when we were here the first time and just now you were all, " her voice dropped in pitch and she squeezed one eye shut, "_Rikku's always good for a laugh, _and I almost died on the way here when I realized you'd been flirting with Yunie because your children would be nasty little beasts and I would've had to watch them and—"

"The only kids I want are yours," he said quietly, rubbing circles over her stomach. "I just wanted to make you jealous."

Her brain died after the first bit, then Phoenix Down'd itself for the second. "Why?" she whined. "It wasn't fun! It sucked. A lot. I think I almost cried."

He frowned. "Sorry. But you came parading in here in... _that... _where everyone could stare at you and I actually considered firing half my staff."

"... You were jealous," she finally went, "so you decided to make _me_ jealous?"

"Yes," he said lamely. She punched him in the shoulder.

"You're stupid," she said with finality, and leaned down to kiss him properly, like she'd been waiting to for months. His fingers slid into her hair and she shifted her hips to get more comfortable. He exhaled hard against her cheek.

"D – don't do that, Cid's girl."

She bit her lip and did it again just to feel him tighten under her. "Don't call me Cid's girl, then."

"That's not fair." He pouted. She grinned and kissed him hard and fast. "I think I like you playing dirty, though."

"You would," she snorted. "We still aren't back together, though."

"Of course not." His fingers slid over her ribcage.

She whimpered. "Because you're a meanie."

"Yup." He looked thoroughly distracted with feeling her up. She trembled, back arching.

"And I'm totally having sex with Buddy."

"'Course," he muttered, and licked from one side of her collarbone to the other. She squeaked. He paused. "Wait, _what?"_

"Okay, not really," she amended quickly, hoping to spare Buddy's life – she was actually rather fond of him, just not like that because he had weird skin-to-hair colouring and always wore goggles and just wasn't Gippal in general. "But I could be."

"I will hold you hostage here, you know that, right?"

She rolled off him quickly and sprang to her feet. "Not if I beat you to the airship, you won't."

He didn't chase her past the temple doors. They both knew she'd be back.

* * *

So she felt kind of like a psychotic ex-girlfriend whenever they happened to be going somewhere in relation to Vegnagun and kept finding Gippal instead. Not that she minded stalking him, because she was kind of crazy about him, but still. She felt moderately creepy.

"You know," Paine pointed out, as they approached the Farplane. "It wouldn't be quite so weird if you'd stop making comments about his ass."

"But it's so fantasterrific!"

"Please tell me you did not just use that word in relation to my most valuable asset," a voice said from the ground. Rikku stumbled over nothing and landed on her knees in front of Gippal. "Graceful."

"You're sitting down," she pointed out, "wounded and kinda useless. Shut up."

He scowled; she scowled back and smoothed out his forehead with her fingers. "Don't do that; you'll get wrinkles and end up looking old and dusty like Pops."

The pad of his thumb swept across her eyebrow. "You aren't allowed to do it either, then."

She smiled, shyly. "Okay."

"This is nauseating," Paine deadpanned. Yunie was rocking back on her heels and giggling madly at them. Rikku flushed.

"Mood: killed," Gippal said for her, and smirked when she snapped back to look at him. "I think you've got a world to save, don't you?"

She threw a mega potion into his lap and resisted the urge to kiss him senseless. He caught her arm and seemed to be having similar thoughts. "I've gotta go save your bromance buddies, but I'll be back in a flash."

He grinned and let her go reluctantly. "Yeah, yeah, whatever Cid's girl."

She puffed out her cheeks and harrumphed. "We are never getting back together!"

"See you in a couple hours," he called back cheerfully. Rikku made a long series of frustrated noises and stormed away, tugging at her hair. Paine rolled her eyes. Yunie bounced up next to her and patted her shoulder.

"You two are perfect for each other," she said.

"Quite the couple, indeed," Paine snickered.

Rikku threw them both the most menacing look she could muster, and then ruined it by grinning so wide she thought her lips would split.

So of course, hearing all that, after they'd kicked Shuyin's butt and reunited him with Lenne and she'd turned around and seen him standing with LeBlanc of all people, she'd nearly had a heart attack. Instead, she opted for jumping from foot to foot, pouting. "Oh, poopie! She's here."

"Noojie!" LeBlanc shrilled. Rikku stared Gippal down, waiting for his eye to drift to her exposed cleavage. It never did. He turned to her and cocked his head. Her heart swelled. She made a point of ignoring him for all of ten seconds.

"Cid's girl," he went, "is that any way to treat your dying boyfriend?"

"EX-BOYFRIEND," she shrieked, and then sprinted towards him in a fit of worry. "You're not really dying are you, I mean I gave you that healing potion, but this is you, so you could've messed that up horribly and reversed the effects and now you're going to die because you're a moron and—"

"Does she ever shut up?" LeBlanc sneered. Rikku attempted to scratch her. Gippal held her back with his good arm.

"Nope," he said, sounding perfectly fine with it, and twisted her towards him. "And I'm not dying, so relax, you maniac."

She pointed at him. "You got me all worried for nothing!"

"Yup."

"You – you're such a –"

"Bastard?" he offered cheekily. She snarled.

"I'm breaking up with you!"

"We never even got back together."

She flailed. "YUNIE, PAINE, WE'RE LEAVING."

Paine shrugged. Yunie looked between the two of them happily. "So cute!"

"ARGH," Rikku went, and took off down the hill, seeing the outline of the boy – the Fayth – and knowing who he was coming for. She smiled despite herself.

_Tidus, _she thought, _you better bring me back the hottest guy you know._

* * *

Tidus, the jerk, didn't bring her back any sexy boys, or even Auron. In fact, he'd barely said hi to her, he was so wrapped up in reuniting with Yunie. Not that she could blame him, because Yunie was kind of a super babe and perfect in every way, but still. Would it have killed him (again) to wave at his bestest best friend in the whole world _who was not Wakka no matter what that fatty said_.

"You just miss Gippal," Paine said, when she'd expressed her utter dismay over the whole thing to her through moping and a bit of sighing. "Just go to Djose, for Spira sake's."

Rikku huffed and kicked her feet back and forth in the water. "I do not miss that egotistical, arrogant, LeBlanc stalking, Guado molesting—"

"You're just making things up, now," Paine pointed out. "Minus ten respect points." She paused so Rikku could throw a small hissy fit. "Grow up and go see him, before I send you there myself."

Rikku blinked. "How would you do that?"

"Violently."

Rikku squeaked and dove off the dock. The water came up to her knees. "Alright, I'm going!"

Paine quirked an eyebrow. "You plan on swimming there?"

"If it means you won't dismember me," Rikku whimpered, "then yes."

Another eye roll. Rikku marked it as her five hundredth since they met and decided they'd celebrate and party and get happily plastered later. "C'mon; we'll take the airship, like we always do. You psycho."

"Why does everyone insult my sanity; I'm perfectly normal."

"You and Shuyin would've gotten along well."

"I – that – _meanie._"

Paine waved her off. "Whatever. Let's go see your boyfriend."

"He's not my boyfriend!"

"He will be by the end of this visit."

Rikku conceded her point and followed her down the beach.

* * *

Paine abandoned her at the temple entrance, muttering about having to visit an old friend, and then headed towards Mushroom Rock Road. Rikku narrowed her eyes at her back. She wondered how loud LeBlanc would get if she knew her precious Noojie-Woojie was more interested in black leather than pink frills.

The worker nearest the door sniggered at her. "He hasn't stopped pacing for a week – I think he thinks you aren't coming back."

She snorted. "Shows how well he knows me. Stupid."

She took the stairs up to his office two at a time and stopped outside his door to adjust her top and smooth out her bangs. Not that she cared what he thought of her or anything – she just liked looking nice and he was stupid and probably more interested in LeBlanc's chest and squeaky voice anyway. She kicked open his door with more force than necessary. "If you're molesting a Guado in here, I swear to Spira I'll—"

Her awesome threat was cut off by Gippal's mouth. She stood there, dazed, until he let her go. "... Um, yeah."

"You," he grumbled, shaking her a bit, "you were supposed to be back like a week ago."

"Sorry," she squeaked. "Got distracted angsting."

He blinked. "Over what?"

"Tidus didn't bring me back a hot guy," she moped. His fingers tightened around her upper arms. "It was such a crime against humanity."

"I see," he said, hard and cold, and stepped back. She stared.

"Are you that retarded?" She waltzed up to him and put her hands on her hips. Honestly, boys were such complete idiots sometimes. "I was kidding. Well, I really was angsting, but not because of the lack of hot men, because I have you, but that scared me a bit so I kinda temporarily ran away. But now you're stuck with me."

His face softened and he tugged her towards him by her wrist. She pretended her pulse didn't flutter under her fingertips. Her heart was pounding, and she didn't know if she liked it.

"I'm sorry for being a douche," he muttered, nose against her forehead. She snorted. "But I've been waiting for you for Spira knows how long and you're kind of slow on the uptake."

Rikku coughed. She'd have to ask him just how long he'd been pining later on – she could lord it over him for forever and a half. "I'm sorry I've only found you moderately sexy for two years."

"Moderately?" He actually looked offended. "_Moderately?"_

She shrugged. "If you were shirtless more often then maybe—"

His shirt landed somewhere near his desk. Gippal looked at her, expectant. She gawked. "Well, then."

"Remember when I told you we had to have sex and you half agreed?"

"Remember when I kicked your ass in less than ten seconds?"

"Point," he muttered. She put her hands on his bare shoulders – _biceps, triceps and abs, YES – _and brushed her lips against the corner of his mouth. "What was that for?"

"Just because," she said honestly, and grinned when he bent his head and tugged at her bottom lip. "Stop trying to undo my top."

His fingers paused against the buckles. "I was hoping you wouldn't notice."

"You're a creep factory."

He smirked and his hands fell to her waist. "You love me, anyway."

She didn't say anything, just let him kiss her, and it was enough.


End file.
